DANGErOUS
by Mitties
Summary: Leafstar of SkyClan and Leafpool of ThunderClan begin having strange dreams. A mysterious new entity enters the Clans... and what is the tie between SkyClan and ThunderClan? -- AU. Pairings undecided. Later installments may have violence.


**Disclaimer: **If I was Erin Hunter, I would not be writing fan fiction. This takes place in an alternate universe, where ThunderClan is at peace and the prophecy of three doesn't exist. It also involves SkyClan, so for those of you who haven't read Firestar's Quest, do so now! Also, the PoV will switch around, so the entire series isn't just going to be told in Leafstar's or Leafpool's eyes! All right, this will be a long series, so I present to you... Part 1 of DANGErOUS!

This one's kind of short, but others will be longer, I promise XD

--

She could barely breath. She'd been running for so long, so long... she needed water. She needed food. She needed _rest._

Leafstar panted desperately, inhaling oxygen with heaving gasps that left her even more tired than she had been before. This didn't make sense. She hadn't even been running or engaged in _any_ kind of strenuous activity. The tabby she-cat blinked, confused. Nothing was making sense. Where was that light coming from? The one that dappled off her pelt, making it look so pretty. Where was that breeze coming from, which played with her fur, gently threading through it as if she was being inspected?

Where was that cat coming from, the one who was approaching her now?

She stared at him. He was a completely gray cat whose entire pelt was tinged with silver. She had never seen such odd fur; the gray part was dull, but the silver part sparkled, as though alive. His eyes were a deep, dark blue, as if he was looking straight through her and into her soul. Leafstar shifted uncomfortably under his penetrating gaze. His eyes were alert and watchful. He had the unmistakeable air of superiority around him... was he a leader? Oh, yes, that had to be it. Maybe he was one of SkyClan's warrior ancestors. That was all she could think of right now.

He parted his jaws, and she waited for some kind of wisdom to come out of him, some kind of helpful phrase that would guide her. Instead, he mewed jumbled nonsense. "I'm so cold. Cold to the very tip of my tail. Cold all the way down to my bones. Look, my whiskers are frozen, see?" He twitched his whiskers. Leafstar stared as the small shards of ice that catapulted off of them turned into huge icicles, which blocked any escape she could hope of. Not that she could see any - it was so dark in here, so dark, and all she could see was _him..._

He padded closer, leering at her. "You'll help me... won't you?" His face twisted into a macabre expression. Leafstar stared in horror. She willed herself to back up, but she was paralyzed. His fangs grew longer and longer, until they resembled saber teeth. The leader could see that his claws were unsheathed as he drew nearer and nearer. Leafstar gave a short, choked cry. "... _won't you?_" He asked his question again, and leaped for her, ready to spear her neck with his extraordinary teeth and take all of her nine lives in a single swipe.

She gave a strangled cry, and all was still.

--

Something was prodding her. "Leafstar! _Leafstar!_"

She mumbled drowsily, then lifted her head and peered at the thing through half-lidded eyes. It was her deputy, Sharpclaw, poking her with his paw. "Are you okay? I heard you yelling in your sleep..."

Leafstar nodded, barely aware of what she was doing. Her mind was still on her dream. Or rather, nightmare. Who was that cat? What did he want? Would he haunt her dreams now forever? Her mind was filled to the brim with all sorts of haunting possibilities when Sharpclaw interrupted again. "Are you _sure_ you're okay? I can take you to Echosong, if you want. I think you need some cobwebs."

She looked at him in surprise. "Why would I need that?" With a flick of his tail, Sharpclaw indicated a deep scratch on her side. Leafstar stared at it. When did she get _that?_ In her dream? When that gray cat had leaped at her, had she turned to the side? Had he scored his claws in her? She couldn't remember. _Why can't I remember, why can't I remember?_ _Oh, mother, please don't leave... No! Don't leave us!_

With a start, she realized she was in a memory. _These thoughts aren't mine! Why are you doing this?_ Leafstar cried out, and then Sharpclaw was there again, looking concerned for real this time. "Leafstar, do you really think you're okay?" She shook her head, not trusting her voice to speak without quavering. StarClan, how she hated being weak! "I'll go fetch Echosong," he volunteered quickly, and bounded off to get their medicine cat. Echosong arrived in a minute with thyme. Chewing on the herb, Leafstar felt calmer, and the shock of her nightmare and her wound faded away. The consistent pain which she'd felt since the dream went away too as Echosong dressed her scratch with cobwebs.

"Anyway, Cherrytail was out hunting, and found something I think you should see. It might be a sign of rogues on our territory." Leafstar bristled as Sharpclaw announced the report. Rogues? That was the last thing SkyClan needed!

"I can go now," she murmured, feeling more stable as she rose to her paws. Leafstar padded out where Cherrytail was waiting, panting with excitement. The warrior had only recently been promoted to her position from apprentice, and still retained some kit-like features sometimes. Leafstar couldn't help but smile as Cherrytail's eyes sparkled in eagerness to show her leader something she had discovered.

"Come with me! It was on one of our borders," Cherrytail explained, racing away before even catching her breath fully. Leafstar exchanged an amused glance with Sharpclaw and rocketed after her. They ran at the speed of light among the rocks; she could barely feel anything, though, with her hard SkyClan pads. Cherrytail grinned as they approached her find, but her brow was furrowed with anxiety. Leafstar slowed and looked expectantly at what Cherrytail had found. All of a sudden, her breath was knocked from her, and she stared with the same horror she had felt at the battle of the rats.

Snagged in one of the shrubs on the border was a piece of dull gray fur tinged with silver.

--

Leafpool awoke abruptly from her dream. In it, a dreary gray cat with amazingly shiny silver touches to his fur had come to her, begging for help. He'd sounded like a kit! She felt pity claw at her heart. She'd reached out to him, in her dream, but then something had happened. Something that had terrified her so much it shocked her awake. She couldn't remember what it was, and Leafpool wasn't sure she wanted to.

The cat's face was fixed in her mind. His soulful blue eyes; his gray and silver fur; his air of dominance. She could see him as clearly as if he was standing in front of her. Then it occurred to her... he _was_ standing in front of her!

"Is something wrong, Leafpool?" Ashfur's worried voice saved her from her amazement. "This thorn in my pad isn't _that_ big of a deal, is it? Is it infected?"

Oh, right. It was just Ashfur. How could she be so stupid? Leafpool looked away, annoyed with herself for a minute, and shook her head. "No, let me just tug the thorn out and lick your pad until the blood stops. Then you'll feel sore for the rest of the day but you'll be fine tomorrow." She proceeded to rip it out as gently as she could. Ashfur still flinched, and left the medicine cat den, going over to the warrior's den to settle down and lick his paw.

Leafpool stared after him. The cat had been like Ashfur, only inside-out. But Ashfur's silver fur wasn't sparkling, and his flecks weren't dull. That cat had had a kind of... _radiance_ surrounding him. Leafpool padded out into camp. Her amber eyes flicked around camp and settled on Ferncloud, who was sitting outside the nursery. She, too, looked like that cat. Could they have some sort of relation? Or was she just connecting them because they were both gray?

The medicine cat's mind was muddled. She shrugged it off. _Just a dream,_ she thought. _Just a dream._ She stretched, sunned for a bit in the soothing sunlight, and headed off to gather herbs. Leafpool wasn't sure where Jaypaw went, but he deserved a vacation from his medicine cat duties. After all, they'd been hard at work last night, trying to cure Longtail of a bad case of whitecough. She'd been worried it would develop into greencough and kill him, but the young tom was still pretty robust, and responded to the medication well.

All of a sudden there was a racket at the camp entrance. Squirrelflight, Dustpelt, Brackenfur, and Hollypaw came tearing into the middle of ThunderClan camp. The dawn patrol was back. Leafpool looked at them curiosly. Dustpelt was snarling, Brackenfur looked anxious, Squirrelflight was bristling with anger, and Hollypaw was tearing up grass in a worrisome way. They headed for Firestar's den. Unable to resist, Leafpool entered too. No cat objected to her presence being there. Even if they had, she wouldn't have left.

She saw it almost before Squirrelflight laid it out before Firestar. A piece of fur - a rather unattractive gray color, but marked with radiant threads of silver. Leafpool couldn't help but stare. And stare. And stare. How could it be? She'd assumed the cat in her dream was just some StarClanner. Had he been... on ThunderClan territory? Was _that_ why she'd dreamed him up? Had that tom been in her den? Leafpool shuddered, remembering his intense stare.

The dawn patrol was reporting to Firestar that they thought a rogue was on their territory. Hollypaw had gone straight to the apprentice's den to spread the news, and Brackenfur was relaying it somewhat calmly to Firestar. Dustpelt constantly interrupted with threats to the rogues and Squirrelflight just stood there, growling. They looked battle-ready. Leafpool turned her gaze away and left the leader's den. She didn't think they even realized she'd been there - or had left - and she didn't care. All she cared about right now was that piece of fur. Leafpool let out a frustrated hiss. "What are you trying to tell me, StarClan?"

She had to know more.


End file.
